Front end loader lube frequency

[milanmark]

When I bought my B2601 the sales guy said to lube the FEL every 5 hours. The manual says every 50 hours if I’m reading it right… what do you guys do? Thanks!

 

[ken erickson]

My LA525 manual states every 10 hours of operation. This is loader operation, not tractor hours. BUT, grease is cheap, and greasing also tends one to inspect the overall condition of loader and tractor.

I try to stick to the 10 hour recommendation or less depending on dust conditions etc.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

I don’t really keep a log or anything of how much I use the loader vs the machine. To keep it simple, I like to make it a habit. I grease the machine and loader whenever I fuel it. (I run better share of a tank through before I fill it). Only exception is if I am mowing really tall / wet grass, I’ll grease just the MMM when finished. I imagine I grease it more often than needed, but I don’t mind spending a little extra on grease.

 

[85Hokie]

Please show me 50 hours in print!

The sticker on my BX say 10 hours.......... not 50 !!!!!!!!

I grease mine not at 10 hours but when I realize I need to - the hours are not what I look at - I look at the the "need" - 10 hours is a good unit however.

 

[GrizBota]

My B2601 documentation suggests greasing the FEL every 10 hours. Same with my L3830’s FEL. I’d go with that.

 

[jyoutz]

My LA1055 sticker says every 10 hours.

 

[06B3030]

Yup..."10 Hours" sticker on my FEL as well. LA403.

 

[mikester]

Every time I refuel I grease. Works out to about every 10-12 hours on my machine.

 

[Bmyers]

Mine says every 10 hours. Based on my use of the loader usually means once a month.

Unlike my rotary mower that gets four hours of solid use about every Saturday during the mowing season, the loader doesn't get the constant use as the mower, so the grease interval is a little further apart before I hit that 10 hour mark.

 

[Haste Makes Waste]

When I bought my B2601 the sales guy said to lube the FEL every 5 hours. The manual says every 50 hours if I’m reading it right… what do you guys do? Thanks!

I think you may be looking at the Tractor "Maintenance Check List" in your Owner's Manual, which recommends Greasing every 50 Hours.

I can see where that could be confusing. Kudos for reading your manual!

I grease my FEL & Backhoe after ~10 hours use, the rest of the tractor ~50 hours of use.

 

[Sobrbiker]

As journeyman equipment operator for a couple/few decades, you’ll have a hard time convincing me of anything but every 10hrs (or every shift)-that’s based on actual use of implement.
Keeping in mind that the pins and bores of the articulation points of non-commercial Kubota tractors is nothing like the hardness and quality of commercial heavy equipment, erring on the side of making sure they don’t go dry is the way I go.

 

[The Evil Twin]

Well, along with everyone else, my loader says 10. Since most of my work i with the loader (or something attached to it) I do stick to adding a pump of lube every 10 or so. The grapple gets some love every other use. But, that's just me.

 

[mikester]

I think you may be looking at the Tractor "Maintenance Check List" in your Owner's Manual, which recommends Greasing every 50 Hours.

View attachment 111448

I can see where that could be confusing. Kudos for reading your manual!

I grease my FEL & Backhoe after ~10 hours use, the rest of the tractor ~50 hours of use.

My machine has the 50 hour maintenance reminder on the intellipanel AND there are stickers everywhere on the grease points saying "grease every 10 hours".

The 50 hour mark is just a reminder for the guys who don't grease their equipment regularly. It's your money and your machine.

Most equipment is made to operate a work day 8-12 hours between grease intervals. The 50 hour reminder is probably for the weekend warriors that probably only put fuel in their tanks once a month.

 

[GeoHorn]

I suspect Kubota has long experience with their equipments’ durability under typical conditions and wish the owners will be satisfied, …and to that end developed the recommended servicing intervals.

 

[Lug66]

My LA535 says to grease it prior to operating FEL and every 10 hours. It also has a 20 to 30 hour fastener retorque. There’s an app called myKubota for iOS or droids. Maybe your tractor has a 50 hour grease fitting lubrication like my LX2610 and that’s what stuck in your mind.

 

[milanmark]

Thanks guys... yeah I was looking at that tractor manual that said 50 hours but that was for greasing battery posts and things like that...
Found the FEL manual on line yesterday... and yeah that sez 10 hours and OMG shows where all the grease points are, what a novel idea! Don't remember a sticker i'll look just cuz... but my dealer did say 5 hours and that wouldn't hurt anything but that's how the how deal was handled... but there wasnt another dealer close.... almost went with a a green tractor but I liked the orange better! Except for the dealer! Anyhow thanks for the responses!

 

[PaulL]

My mower I do when I sharpen the blades - which is every couple of months for me. It's easier to grease with the mower off, I do about 10 hours a month, so that's probably every 20 hours.

Loader doesn't do much work, I'm probably once a quarter on that, which I'd guess to be 3-4 hours of loader use unless I do a big day of something specifically loader related.

It's hard to over grease. It's easy to under grease. More often won't hurt anything. But realistically my tractor will never wear out, I'm doing less than 100 hours a year, most of them mowing. It'd go 20 years before getting to 2,000 hours, and it's built for far more than 2,000 hours of work. If I'm still driving a tractor in 20 years (i.e. haven't moved to an old folks home) then I will have bought a newer and betterer one by then.

 

[fried1765]

My mower I do when I sharpen the blades - which is every couple of months for me. It's easier to grease with the mower off, I do about 10 hours a month, so that's probably every 20 hours.

Loader doesn't do much work, I'm probably once a quarter on that, which I'd guess to be 3-4 hours of loader use unless I do a big day of something specifically loader related.

It's hard to over grease. It's easy to under grease. More often won't hurt anything. But realistically my tractor will never wear out, I'm doing less than 100 hours a year, most of them mowing. It'd go 20 years before getting to 2,000 hours, and it's built for far more than 2,000 hours of work. If I'm still driving a tractor in 20 years (i.e. haven't moved to an old folks home) then I will have bought a newer and betterer one by then.

I KNOW that I will not last another 20 years!

I grease my two Fords, and my Kubota L48 TLB ,...... when the spirit moves me.
Once each year?.....my use is EXCEPTIONALLY light per machine.

I DO love my 18V DeWalt grease gun though.

 

[GeoHorn]

I had to cringe when I visited one of our participants over in Looeasyanna …. when I observed him operating his FEL on his little 20 yr old Kubota which lives outdoors near Lake Toledo Bend…. The pivots on that FEL were all rusty-brown….I don’t believe they’d ever been greased…. and altho’ it did the job it creaked and moaned with every movement of the FEL.

( Typical behavior…. Ever see an electrician’s home...? or that of a plumber..? or a mechanic‘s car, boat, etc…?? Our Looeasyanna friend is a retired airline mechanic.… Very comforting, heh?)

 

[Runs With Scissors]

…. …. The pivots on that FEL were all rusty-brown….I don’t believe they’d ever been greased…. and altho’ it did the job it creaked and moaned with every movement of the FEL.

I have grown quite fond of those types of guys recently.

Got me a free riding lawn mower a few weeks ago because they never greased the front kingpin for 13 years.

https://www.orangetractortalks.com/...hen-you-dont-know-sh-t-about-machinery.64264/